Burrows aiming to end on a high

Yorkshire Carnegie captain Ryan Burrows is confident his side can finish the job and secure promotion to the Aviva Premiership when they take on London Irish in the Greene King IPA Championship Final.

Carnegie will play the first leg at Headingley Carnegie this Wednesday 17th May, kick off 7.45pm and Burrows is hoping a big crowd will be there to back them in their final push for promotion.

Speaking ahead of the first leg Burrows said: “We are in a positive mood heading into the final two games. Although we were disappointed with the performance in the second leg of the semi-final against Ealing we have learned a lot of lessons from that game and are confident we can put that behind us and improve in the final two games. We have been training well and the players are excited for the games and what we have the potential to do.”

The Final will see the top two finishing sides in the Greene King IPA Championship go head to head and Burrows feels this will result in an exciting end to the season.

“Irish have played well all season. They have a very good set piece and are patient and can force errors. We know they are a very good side and have been consistent all year.

“We are confident in our own abilities and we know we have it in us to put in two big performances. We set ourselves the target to make it to the final and we achieved that for the first time in our history and now we have the opportunity to achieve the ultimate target we have been working towards, to win promotion. We know we will have to give 100% in both games to do that. Many of the lads signed for the club with the vision to get the team back in to the Premiership and that is what we are determined to do. We’ve never been in the final before and that’s a big achievement for us, but we’ve got to go out there and finish the job.”

Burrows, who was named Yorkshire Carnegie Player of the Season and nominated for the Championship Player of the Season, has been with Yorkshire Carnegie since the 2011-12 season and ranks this side is one of the best during his time at the club and believes they are in a good position to achieve promotion.

“I think this is one of the best Carnegie teams I have played in,” he said. “People talk about the team we had under Jimmy Lowes as being a great side, but I think the difference now is many of the players from that side have matured and have more experience. We’ve also been able to bring in more experienced players like Richard Mayhew, Alex Davies and Dean Schofield plus Joe Ford has come back to the club as a better player, so I think we are in really good shape for the final.”

Burrows is set to leave the club at the end of the season to join Newcastle Falcons and he said he is aiming to go out on a high by leading the team back to the top flight.

“These will be my final two games for the club and I will look back at my time here fondly, but it will be even better if I can finish off by helping the side back into the Premiership. That was my aim when I signed for the club six years ago.

“It would be massive for us if we could get a big crowd at Headingley Carnegie on Wednesday. The fans have been great all year, but we need one final push and their support will make all the difference in the game. Having the crowd behind you give you a big lift and we hope to see a big crowd cheering on the team on Wednesday.”

Tickets are now on sale for this fixture. Yorkshire Carnegie 2016-2017 Members can claim a £5 discount on their own match ticket if purchased prior to midnight on Tuesday 16th May. There will be no difference in price between gold and silver members.